a day in the life...

Dear hubby is gone for two whole nights and 2 and 1/2 whole (well the 1/2 is just a half) days. He's off helping a friend build something on his cabin, with the added bonus of fishing and swimming and drinking beer. Not that he drinks alot of beer, but he enjoys a good beer and enjoys it when someone else is enjoying it too, and I don't enjoy beer as much as he...although the beer he brought along he didn't really enjoy and brought it along more to get rid of it than to drink it, so maybe we can scratch the drinking beer being a bonus :) but back to the original train of thought...where was I? Oh yeah, being alone. I suppose I'm not technically alone, as Mickey is with me, and we are actually have a great "girls only" time. We went out to get subs for supper and munchies and movies. Girly movies. The one's the boys would never ever watch with us. So we rented "Jump" (I think it's called that) and it's about this teenage boxer guy that get's roped into double dutch skipping for a competition. Mickey loved it. Thought the guy was "hot". Had some good bopping type of music, really neat dancing/moves. I loved that she loved it. Then we watched "Loves enduring promise". A "have your hanky ready" kind of movie. We both enjoyed it. Tomorrow, we head out to the 'peg to meet the other lonely 'cabin widow' and her daughter for brunch and some shopping, then a couple of gf's are coming down for supper and another girly movie. We are going to watch "sisterhood of the travelling pants". Should be a very fun day.

Now and again I get a wakeup call that I really act like a princess and dh is way too easy on me, too bad I forget it so quickly. Usually these wakeup calls come when dh is away. Today has been the wakeup call. Dh is the one that does all things horsey. I help sometimes, but it's really just a token gesture. Today, I had to do all that stuff by myself (boo hoo), and I will have to tomorrow and the next day. ugh. I hate doing heavy stuff. I can manage, but it's never pretty or elegant and makes me feel very uncoordinated. I'm just glad no one's there to see it. The horses don't care if I look ridiculous and it takes 3 times as long to get it all done. Today was also the day that I had to figure out how to help all three (oh yeah, did I mention we did get the third horse after all...more on that in a different post) horses get along, sort of. Tuffy and Roman are not being very welcoming to P.D.Q., our latest addition. Tuffy is just a big adolescent type bully! I love him, but he reminds me of junior high kids trying to be cool. So, we put Tuffy in a different fence in the morning before Pat left. However, that fence doesn't have any shade during the hottest part of the day, so I needed to move him to the big fence. Not a problem. At all actually, just needs to get done, and I don't like doing it alone. Well, as soon as he's back in the big fence, the two big bullies won't let P.D. eat or drink, and they won't share their tails with him so that the flies stay off better. They buddy up and swat each other's faces with their tails, but won't help out poor P.D. They chase him away. Poor P.D. Now P.D. is going a little crazy. His other home didn't have the flies that our home has. He's running around the pasture, and working up a sweat, and is not allowed at the water. Not good. So I need to figure out a solution.

I wait until the other fenced area has shade, and then try to round up P.D. At this point he is a little nuts, and doesn't really get the concept of "personal space". I thought of sending Mickey in after him, but thought that wouldn't be well done of me. Self-preservation is a strong instinct, but good thing for her, mothering is stronger :) So in I go, with Tuffy and Roman trying to bully him, and me trying to halter him, and the flies making him a little crazy - P.D. is really not in a good "space". However, I persevere, get the halter on the horse, and manage to coax him outta the pasture and into the other fence. (clap clap clap)

Now for the next problem: fly spray. He's scared of spray, and it has so far taken both me and Pat to hold him and try to spray him down, and we usually get only half of him sprayed. But he is obviously needing fly spray, or he's going to lose it entirely. It is a very good thing (for him) that I have faith in this horse that he is not mean or spooky (normally) and that he will not try to run me down if I approach him with the spray. To make a long story short, I got him to stand still for the fly spray...quite an accomplishment. Mickey would say it's because she sang "you are my sunshine" to him, but I think he just likes me. So now my three horses are in two different fences, P.D. all to himself, doesn't have to worry about food or water, he has plenty, and all is peaceful...Until the morning, when I need to move him back in with the bullies, and he'll have to figure out how to take care of himself.

two sleeps until my "farm boy" is back. I will survive, let's just hope the horses do too.